Has anyone else read the comics? Am up to volume 3, 'Proud Americans'. They are very good but I've had to put it down for the minute as it's giving me the weirdest dreams . Good story though, very good characters. A-mazing art. Am a big Cassidy fan of course.

I've read the first couple of volumes. Very grotesque and violent, though it was much better than the only other Garth Ennis work that I have read, The Boys. It appeals to my misotheistic sensibilities, though, and I like both Jesse Custer and the unfortunately named Ar**face. In fact, I feel sorry for both of them, especially after what Custer went through at the hands of that b*tch of a grandmother of his.

Quatermass, haven't heard of The Boys or Transmetropolitan . I found out about The Preacher from a fellow 2000AD reader. Yes, it's grotesque & violent but still good. I had to look up misotheistic , I wouldn't say that but I think it's interesting & not really surprising that Ennis is Irish. Jesse's family are truly broken people. But of course, they get their comeuppance. I haven't picked up the comic for a little while but will no doubt start again soon.

Sister Jennifer wrote:Quatermass, haven't heard of The Boys or Transmetropolitan . I found out about The Preacher from a fellow 2000AD reader. Yes, it's grotesque & violent but still good. I had to look up misotheistic , I wouldn't say that but I think it's interesting & not really surprising that Ennis is Irish. Jesse's family are truly broken people. But of course, they get their comeuppance. I haven't picked up the comic for a little while but will no doubt start again soon.

A misotheist is someone who hates God. Preacher is a misotheistic work from the outset. I'm not saying that it's bad because of it. It actually appeals to me because of the misotheism.

Jesse's family are broken? They are not broken. They are evil (well, excepting his parents). Jesse could be considered broken. Same with Tulip O'Hare and A***face. They are to be pitied, felt sorry for. But not Jesse's grandmother, nor her enforcers. They deserve far more than what they get. It's the self-righteousness when they do evil that really makes me wish that Jesse's grandmother was put into that underwater coffin herself and left to rot. At least.

Let me give you some advice, regarding The Boys and Transmetropolitan. Avoid The Boys like you would someone with Ebola. The story concept (about a squad of CIA-backed operatives fighting a variety of superheroes, most of whom are sociopathic, at best) is an excellent one, but it is wasted on gratuitious sex and violence. I read it before I read Preacher, and very nearly didn't read Preacher because of how I considered The Boys.

Transmetropolitan, however, is excellent. It's about a Hunter S Thompson-style journalist in the far future called Spider Jerusalem, who is forced to come back to the City he hates because he needs to write two books for a contract, and needs journalism work in the meantime to support himself. Although the first two volumes doesn't have an overarching story, from the third volume onwards, it grows into Spider becoming the adversary of wannabe President Gary Callahan, aka 'the Smiler', who makes the Joker look small-time. Violent and weird (this is a future where cloned human meat is eaten, cybernetics are common, and cryogenic revivals are a significant underclass), it is nonetheless an excellent series. If you can get it from the local library, then do so, so you can try before you buy. I got a copy from my local library, and I got hooked.

BTW, I've got another recommendation if you want it. It's another Vertigo series. It's called The Unwritten. It's the story of Tom Taylor, a young man whose father, Wilson Taylor, was a famous author of a Harry Potter-esque fantasy series called the Tommy Taylor series. Wilson Taylor disappeared years ago, and Tom Taylor, the real one, has felt like his childhood had been stolen and fictionalised by his own father, and so becomes a sort of jaded pseudo-celebrity with no marketable skills and a knowledge of literary geography. Then, a young woman called Lizzie Hexam tells him at a convention that there are parts of his life that don't add up, and things go downhill from there. Not only does he have to deal with a real version of Tommy Taylor's vampire nemesis, Count Ambrosio, but he also has to deal with a mysterious Cabal who seem intent on bringing Tom Taylor down.

They actually based Tom Taylor on Christopher Robin Milne, the son of AA Milne, and the basis for Christopher Robin in the Winnie the Pooh series. Christopher Robin Milne wasn't happy with what his father did either.

I've read the first three volumes (it's an ongoing series) so far, and it's actually quite excellent.

Heyya, thanks for the heads-up. I had a google, looks promising. I didn't know that about Christopher Robin. It's taking me awhile to read them but I'm up to Vol. 6 of Preacher. I can't tell you how much I'm enjoying it. The last couple of volumes have had back stories i.e the Saint of Killers, Cassidy & Arseface, which are astoundingly good. I've ordered the first 4 volumes of Transmetropolitian from Amazon, they're all around the $10. I'm excited about them arriving. Anyway too much real life getting in the way. Shall keep you posted.

I'm not sure about continuing with Preacher. The first volume was quite trying.

They state the reason for Edward (presumably Warren Ellis and/or Darick Robertson are fans of The League of Gentlemen) and other people getting fatal doses of lead in the head later in that volume. Basically, it was a distraction.